


And They Were Mates

by solversonlou



Category: EastEnders (TV)
Genre: Friends to Lovers, M/M, Overuse Of The Word Mate
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-11
Updated: 2019-07-11
Packaged: 2020-06-26 09:29:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19765366
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/solversonlou/pseuds/solversonlou
Summary: Martin has moved in with Kush after breaking up with Stacey. Kush, also single, welcomes it. AKA: Oh my god, they were mates.





	And They Were Mates

It's late November, and Martin has been single for approximately two weeks, occupying Kush's spare room now that Robbie has moved back in with Sonia, and the two have designated the flat as 'The Lad Pad', the two of them both single after the year of drama the Slaters had pulled them into.

The first few nights, Martin had been angry, reeling from the revelation that Stacey had snogged Max again. He should have known, considering their history, and he doesn't hate her, not really, but it still hurts. It's still a betrayal, and Martin has had enough of those to last a life time.

Kush had lent him a metaphorical shoulder and they'd gotten wasted in The Vic, making quite the scene, and Kush had had to pull Martin away from confronting Max, hand pressed to his shoulder, leaning in to whisper to him that he wasn't worth it, that Martin should be the better man.

Martin had laid off, and the two of them had stumbled back to Kush's flat, arms around each other's shoulders, loudly singing You're My Best Friend by Queen, no doubt waking up half of the square on the way.

Now, after two weeks of takeaways and testosterone filled action flicks, the two of them are sitting on Kush's sofa, having just drank half a pack of lagers, and they're debating the strength of Arnold Schwarzenegger.

"Yeah, but it's all chemicals, in't it?" Martin argues, gesturing with his hands, sloshing a little lager on the knee of his jeans.

"What? You think he juiced? Are you out of your mind, mate?" Kush seems genuinely offended, even with how lighthearted he otherwise is, scoffing at the audacity of Martin's words. "That is completely achievable, with the right diet and exercise and weight training..."

"Oh, give off!" Martin scoffs back, waving a dismissive hand. He leans forward on the sofa, slaps a hand on Kush's knee. "I think you need to get a head scan, mate, if you think that's in any way achievable."

"It absolutely is!" Kush exclaims, tugging at the hem of his own t-shirt as he leans back, exposing the hard surface of his toned abs. He grabs Martin's hand, places it on his stomach, squeezing his knuckles to make sure he gets a proper grab of it. "Look at that! Pure dedication! None of this juicing rubbish!"

Martin, taken aback slightly by the sudden touch and presence of Kush's torso under his fingers, takes a moment to respond, lips parted for a second, tongue running across his bottom lip. Meeting Kush's eye, he chuckles, crows feet deepening as he squeezes Kush's stomach before moving his hand to Kush's side, "Yeah, well muscle can't stop you squirming, can it?"

Kush's body tightens as Martin playfully squeezes his side and starts to tickle him. He can't help the laughter that follows. He tries to reach back to return the tickling, but is rendered helpless, squirming and laughing, Martin moving over him, both their legs scrambling on the sofa and floor.

Martin manages to get the better of him for a moment, teasing Kush with playful jabs at his vanity as Kush laughs and calls him a softie, getting a few pokes at Martin's less toned torso through his t-shirt.

A quick distraction from Kush renders their positions switched pretty fast, Kush getting a leg under Martin's, shifting their weight on the sofa, hands grabbing at Martin's sides, overpowering him.

Martin kicks his feet out, but it's no use, his laughter filling the air as the weight of Kush moves over him, pinning him down by his hips, their jeans creating friction between them. He reaches his own hands up again, but Kush grabs him by the wrists and pins them down, up above his head on the arm of the sofa, their laughter breathless.

The laughter dies down gradually as they hold each other's gaze, Kush's brown eyes widening as they flicker across Martin's features, the soft curve of his still smiling lips, the way his eyes crease at the corners slightly. He's seen his face hundreds of times since they first met, but something in the air feels different, heavy and electric as Martin's tongue darts across his bottom lip and he blinks up at him slowly, eyes half lidded.

"Mate..." Martin's voice is low, his fingers curling in on his palms as Kush's hands relax their grip on his wrists.

Kush swallows, adam's apple bobbing in his throat as he looks down at his friend, the closest friend he's ever had. His hips shift, ever so minutely, and Martin's lips part, letting out a small puff of breath.

Neither of them really know who closes the gap between them, only that Martin cranes his neck up as Kush leans down, their noses bumping together before their lips touch, soft and timid, unsure even of what they're doing, if it's actually happening.

Kush's hand finds itself pressed to Martin's cheek, thumb stroking across the light stubble, the feeling so vastly different to every other kiss he's had, but it's not bad... far from it, in fact.

Pulling apart, Martin reaches his hands up, holding Kush's biceps as he blinks up at him, a little taken aback by what had just happened between them, unsure of how Kush feels.

"Martin..." Kush says it like it's a question, pressing their foreheads together, their noses brushing, breath a ghost across Martin's lips. "This ain't weird, is it?"

"No," Martin swallows, shaking his head slightly, his leg curling around Kush's a little tighter, hips craning slightly, stirring something from them both, bodies flush with heat. "No, it ain't weird."

"Good," Kush exhales, his left hand pressing to Martin's chest. He can feel his heart, thrumming under his palm, the heat radiating off him. "Mate, I really want to kiss you again."

"Hm," Martin nods, craning his chin up, their lips brushing lightly. "Me too."

Closing the gap between them, their mouths press together again, firmer this time, lips parting, deeper and harder, hands gripping firmer, Kush's fingers sliding down Martin's torso.

They can both taste lager on each other's tongue, but neither of them care, hips rolling together, heat flooding through them both, drunk off the proximity of each other.

Kush's fingers struggle a little with Martin's belt, Martin's own hands sliding up Kush's shirt, mapping across the toned surface of his stomach, gripping his waist as he cranes his hips up against him.

It's haphazard and messy, the two of them scrambling to get half undressed, kissing open mouthed, but neither of them seem to mind, not when they're both so up for it.

Kush's fingers find Martin eventually, as well as himself, wrapping around both of them, hard and wanting, Martin groaning into Kush's shoulder, hips bucking into the touch.

"Mate, Kush," Martin breathes out after a while, Kush's own arousal pressed against his own sending him closer to the edge. "Mate..."

Kush groans, forehead pressed to Martin's shoulder, his t-shirt damp with sweat as Kush rocks down against him, "Mate..."

Neither of them last very long after that.

Martin moans into Kush's mouth, fingers pressed to the nape of his neck, stars bursting behind his eyelids as heat floods through him, spilling across Kush's stomach and knuckles.

Kush follows pretty quickly, across Martin's hip, fingers pressed hard against his arms, leaving crescent shaped nail marks in his skin.

Breathless and riding out their bliss, they collapse on the sofa, warm and overcome.

\- - -

The sound of Kush's phone alarm stirs him from his slumber, eyes opening slowly to the still dark morning of Late November. It takes a moment for him to gather his bearings, the warm, solid weight of something beneath him a gradual reminder of the night's previous events.

Martin, groggy and half asleep, murmurs something from beneath him, and Kush slowly rises up, untangling their bodies from the sofa.

Reaching over to the coffee table, Kush picks up his phone, blinks blearily at his work alarm before shutting it off. He slides to sit on the floor between the sofa and coffee table, leaving room for Martin to slowly sit up, stretching out his tired limbs.

"Mate, did last night actually happen, or am I just going mad?" Kush asks after a moment, not looking up at Martin, scared that he'll react negatively, that he'll be angry and deny it.

Scratching the back of his head, Martin blinks, looking over to Kush, who has his back to him. He swallows, reaches out a hand, presses it to the back of Kush's neck, voice soft, "Kush, it's alright."

Turning his neck, Kush blinks up at Martin, brows furrowed, lips parted. He looks so worried. Martin doesn't like it. 

"Hey, mate," Martin reassures him, leaning down, squeezing Kush's neck. "I'm alright with it if you're alright with it. You're alright with it, right?"

Kush nods, fingers reaching up to squeeze Martin's forearm, thumb rubbing across the bare skin, "I thought you'd think it was a mistake. We're mates and we're not..."

"Well, we're still mates," Martin reasons, thumb stroking across Kush's hair. He exhales, lips pursed as he nods. "And we're... well, I don't know what we are when it comes to that. But I know I'd like to... if you want to, I mean."

"Do it again?" Kush asks, eyes widening a little, and Martin stammers, worried that he's asked too much.

"Er, no, I mean," Martin says, hand moving away from Kush's neck. "I wouldn't mind it. You don't have to, if you don't want to."

Relief flooding through him, Kush's lips curl into a smile as he pushes himself off the floor and back onto the sofa, besides Martin, before reaching out and grabbing his hand, "Well, I wouldn't be against it."

Blinking at him, Martin grins, chuckling, relieved, "Well, that settles it then."

Kush grins before leaning across the sofa and closing the gap between them.

**Author's Note:**

> we out here shipping mates 2 lovers kush & martin


End file.
